"I need us to be honest about what this is."

I finally managed to finish the sentence without changing my mind halfway through it.

Cassian sat across from me in the Den Library, his hands resting on the table between us. We'd chosen this room because Cain had never runed its walls.

"All right," he said.

I frowned. "That's it?"

"What would you prefer?"

"Something that suggests you understand how difficult this conversation is."

"I understand."

"Then perhaps you could look slightly less ...